Relevant to many North American grape growers, disease pressures in the vineyard will be at the centre of this year’s Triggs International Premium Vinifera Lecture Series.

Held every two years in the key wine producing regions of both Ontario and British Columbia, the event has become a favourite on many calendars in the grape and wine industry.

This year’s lectures and vineyard tours take place Thursday, Aug. 8 and Friday, Aug. 9 at Brock University and three vineyard sites in Ontario’s Niagara region; and Tuesday, Aug. 13 and Wednesday, Aug. 14 in vineyards in the Okanagan area.  The public lecture will be hosted at the Summerland Research and Development Centre in B.C.’s Okanagan Valley. 

Organized by Brock’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI), the Triggs Lecture hosts international experts who provide grape growers, industry stakeholders, researchers and students with access to the most current developments in the field of viticulture. 

This year’s featured speaker is Vaughn Bell, Senior Scientist at the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research, who will address vineyard health and disease pressures in the vineyard.

“These unique educational opportunities for our partners in Ontario and British Columbia are an important part of CCOVI’s outreach activities to support the national grape and wine industry,” said CCOVI Director Debbie Inglis. 

In each province, the first day of the event includes vineyard visits and a technical tour, with a public lecture being held on day two. 

“The vineyard visits are very valuable because they bring experts from around the world right to growers in Niagara and the Okanagan,” said Barb Tatarnic, CCOVI’s Outreach Manager. “It’s really about learning from a leading international expert as well as exchanging ideas and learning from each other.”

The Ontario public lecture on Aug. 9 will be livestreamed for those unable to attend. The link will be available that day on brocku.ca/ccovi. The video will also be posted to CCOVI’s online archive following the lecture. 

All lectures and site visits are free, but an RSVP to ccovi@brocku.ca by Thursday, Aug. 1 is required.

Launched in 2004, the Triggs Lectures are made possible through a generous endowment by Donald and Elaine Triggs. Originating as a means to attract and showcase world leaders in the cultivation of premium vinifera grapes, the series expanded its offerings to both the Ontario and British Columbia grape and wine regions in 2011 thanks to the support of BASF Canada.

Schedule for the Ontario event:

Thursday, Aug. 8: Vineyard site visits and a technical workshop.
Friday, Aug. 9: The public lecture, “A pathway towards leafroll virus management: The New Zealand experience” will be held at 3 p.m. in Brock University’s Pond Inlet with a reception to follow.